


Looking

by Deannie



Category: Firefly
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-05-10
Updated: 2005-05-10
Packaged: 2017-12-18 09:30:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/878300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deannie/pseuds/Deannie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <b>Post-Serenity.</b>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Looking

**Author's Note:**

> **WARNING! SPOILERS FOR SERENITY!**
> 
> She wandered the halls, looking for something she was never going to find.

**Looking**

There was pain, right enough. 

Pain in his stomach now to go with the war pains in the rest of his body. Pain in his soul that ached something more fierce. 

There was pain in his ship--a tired whining that she let out too often now. Even rebuilt as she was, she felt the lack of what she'd had. The plastic figures on the pilot's console felt their own lack, but he hadn't the heart to let them go. That would no doubt cause a pain too big to contemplate, and he wasn't having that, no matter the looks that Zoe gave them every once in a while. 

Was a bit like the look she gave Serenity's new-married couple, too, and he could well understand. Kaylee and Simon could be a bit too much like Zoe and Wash was, once upon a time. The look she gave would be anger, but Mal figured she was just too tired to give that. He could see that she ached some when she didn't find her bunk at night--and that was most nights. She wandered the halls, looking for something she was never going to find. 

And Mal found himself wishing the preacher was here, just to give her a word of comfort. 

Yes, there was pain. 

But there was heartening, too. River was... well, maybe not better, but different at least. Like what she'd seen and what they'd done was enough to take some of the pressure off. She wandered too, but Mal could never be sure if she was looking for something, or just looking. 

He'd stopped looking for anything, but he seemed to find it anyway. Inara was always there, quiet and pretty, and that was something. 

And somehow, in the middle of the 'verse, as his ship flew her way, he figured that was enough. Zoe's pain would ease some, as the years went on, and maybe they'd all get to something nearing peace. 

Until then, Wash's dinosaurs kept him company in the night, and that was enough, too. 

* * * * * * *  
The End


End file.
